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Since I didn't find this topic in the forums, I thought we might discuss it here...

I'm currently gaming a 46* PW, 50*, 55* SW, 60*

My distance on full swing are:

PW 115-121 yards

50* 99-105 yards

SW 85-92 yards

60* 70-75 yards

First of all, I hope the gaps between the clubs are correct.

Second, I think having 4 wedges is doing more harm than good. Sometimes I sit between 2 wedges and don't know which one to hit... I'm sure some of you have a similar problem.

So my idea is to go to a 3 wedge set up.

Ideally, it should be 46* PW, 53* SW, 60*, correct?

But I don't think there are any 53* wedges out there with enough bounce to hit as a SW... most of the 14 bounce SW go from 54* to 56*

I could bend it to 53* but I have no experience with bending, so I don't know what I'm talking about here.

So if I don't want to bend it, what other options do I have? 46, 54, 60? Or 46, 52, 58? Which one would you recommend? The second option would have the gap a spread out evenly, but there is no 52* with 14 bounce.

In this case, my gap wedge and sand wedge would be the same club and I would have the freedom to choose a 58*/60* with 4 bounce or something.

I still haven't figured whether I'm a digger or a slider, so I thought having wedges with difference bounces would be a good idea.

What do you guys think?

EDIT: Went to the range again and measured the wedge distance with GPS, should be a little more accurate now.

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For me it comes down to how far you hit the ball off the tee on the courses that you play. I hit it long, so I carry 4 wedges (47,52,56,60) to close the gaps, because I'm hitting a wedge into most par 4's. If you're hitting 8 and 9 irons into most par 4's, then I'd go with PW, 52, and 58.

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I carry 4 wedges (47, 53, 57 and 64). I know it's a bit of an unusual kit, but it works well for me. It's somewhat funny, but I don't have any concrete distance for any of them. The pitching wedge is good for to 140 (level terrain, New York summertime heat and humidity). A bit of a tail wind and a slight downhill pitch and 150 isn't out of the question. Cooler temps, and it's 130 max.

Almost anything else depends on the conditions at the time and whether I want to hit the ball low or high. Generally speaking 115-120 is ideal distance be for a gap wedge. Sand wedge is 100-110, anything below that is often the 64, but I'm also fairly adept at taking half and quarter swings with the SW, and very rarely with the gap. Once the distance gets above 110 it could be 1 of 3 wedges depending on what I'm trying to do.

125 is one of the distance I dread most (when wind isn't a factor). A bit short for a PW, probably too long for a muscled gap wedge. I smile big at 85, 105, 115.

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I actually hardly use the PW as a wedge. For me it's more of a 10 iron. I have a 50* 54* and 58* wedge setup. I find that I have a nice 10 yard gap from PW - GW - SW - LW - 1/2 GW - 1/2 SW - 1/2 LW - chipping. I fill in the gaps from my long irons by having a 3H that is 19* and a 4H that's 22* instead of the typical 21* 3-iron and 24* 4-iron. I do have a 15 yard gap between my 4H and 5-iron, so I just typically avoid any layup that will land me 180 yards from the tee. If I do have to hit that shot, I just choke down a little on my 4H.

Then again, I'm a high-handicapper, so who knows if I'm doing it right

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Since I didn't find this topic in the forums, I thought we might discuss it here...

]But I don't think there are any 53* wedges out there with enough bounce to hit as a SW... most of the 14 bounce SW go from 54* to 56*

I could bend it to 53* but I have no experience with bending, so I don't know what I'm talking about here.

So if I don't want to bend it, what other options do I have? 46, 54, 60? Or 46, 52, 58? Which one would you recommend? The second option would have the gap a spread out evenly, but there is no 52* with 14 bounce.

What do you guys think?

EDIT: Went to the range again and measured the wedge distance with GPS, should be a little more accurate now.

Take your wedges to a clubfitter, I was surprised to find my Cleveland wedges were off by at least 1* and in the case of my LW 2*. Any decent clubfitter can bend a wedge at least 2*

The 4/5 wedge system is ideal for low cappers who have plenty of time to practice. For most of us, a 3 wedge system (perhaps four if you use your PW as a 10 iron) is more than enough. IMHO, I see far too many people playing high spinning wedge shots that leave little room for error.

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I know this is an old topic but I just replaced my worn Vokey with the Callaway Jaws Series, I use the four wedge system, but will sometimes drop the three wood and insert a 64* Vokey (less than a year old) if it really hard and dry. I typically do not hit any short or mid irons 100%. I have a 47* PW then a 52*/12* bounce, 56*/16* bounce, and a 60*/0* bounce. I not only want different lofts but I want a variety of bounces also so that the lie can dictate what club to use as much as the distance. A 60 yard shot off of the fairway will be a 52* wedge, out of the rough will be 56* and off of the hardpan will be a 60*. Of course the length of swing will vary but the tempo will be the same. My 60* is the new CC grooves, since I do not need to spin it out of the rough much I did not want the aggressive grooves. It still put plenty of spin on the half and 3/4 shots but the little pitches around the green will not check up if I do not want them too. I have plenty of other options if I want it to check up. The zero bounce also reduces the odds of bouncing up and blading the ball.

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The 4/5 wedge system is ideal for low cappers who have plenty of time to practice. For most of us, a 3 wedge system (perhaps four if you use your PW as a 10 iron) is more than enough.

I think I have to disagree with this statement on 4/5 for low cappers and 3 for high cappers. Low cappers have the "feel" or "touch" to control distance much better than high handicappers plus are less likely to need them. A few years ago when I started carrying all these wedges I found it very comforting to know that if I was 40 yards out, I brought the 56 degree wedge back to belt high and swung through to belt high. 50 yards, same swing 52 degree. 30 yards, same swing 60 degree. 60 yards, same swing with a PW or 60 degree from shoulder high, and so on. I went so far as to write down the distances on a card and carried in my bag. I would get to the ball, determine the distance, look at the card and I knew exactly how to play it. It makes all the difference in the world to have no doubt in your mind how to play the next shot. The interesting thing about it is, as I got better at making contact with the center of the club face, I saw these distances grow to the point where I needed to add the 64 degree wedge.

However, this philosophy should not be limited to just wedges. The same swing that now produces the 50 yard shot with the 56* produces a 100 yard shot with the 8 iron. So, if I have a 100 yard shot I have the option of an easy 52*, a really hard 56*, an 3/4 (shoulder high) PW or an 1/2 (belt high) 8 iron, or even a bump and run with a 24* hybrid (knee high). Of course this can be done with any club. So, from 100 yards I have 6 choices in how to play it. I would only pick the 56* if I had to go over a tree and only the bump and run if it was very smooth and flat to the green. But wind and conditions are a consideration. Today, I hit a 175 yard bump and run with a driver (hands a little more than waist high) that came out of the trees and rolled across the green to the fringe.

These are not necessarily my distances because I lost the card but if I were to make another it would be like this.

The head of the club is brought back to this clock position.

Club..7:30..9:00..10:30..12:00..Full

64.......21....33.....52.....65....72

60.......23....40.....62.....78....83

56.......29....49.....78.....98...105

52.......32....53.....85....106...115

PW.....38....63....100....126...135

9........41....68....109....137...145

8........44....74....118....148...156

7........48....79....127....159...165

These are not the actual numbers. I have not spent the time lately to know exactly how far I hit each one with each swing. What I do know is that on my normal iron swing, I only take the club head back to the 12 o'clock position. Irons are all about control. From that position, I hit the ball the distances listed and have some left over if for some reason I have to really kill the ball. (I have hit the FULL wedge shot in six months. When I did it backed completely off of the green.) The other numbers are a spreadsheet of 80% 50% and 30%, but this is close to what I got when I actually measured them. My number would be meaningless to your game anyway.

Once again the point is that when faced with a shot inside 100 yards, you can estimate the distance and have a go to club.

High cappers are much more likely to miss the green or be in the 30 to 50 yards from the green range than low cappers. Having a go to shot from these distances is very important. Having a selection of wedges and know how hard to hit them makes it easier. The likelihood of hitting the green from 200 yards is slim, but the likelihood of being inside of 50 yards from there is high. More wedges give increase the chance of getting up and down.

On a side note, since in the previous post I told that I went to Callaway wedges, I will point out that I went back to the Vokeys. Vokeys just suit me better. I do not know what it was about them, I just scored better the Vokeys. I played with a guy who switched at the same time as I did but from Callaway to Vokeys and hated the Vokeys. So we ended up swapping.

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I think I have to disagree with this statement on 4/5 for low cappers and 3 for high cappers. Low cappers have the "feel" or "touch" to control distance much better than high handicappers plus are less likely to need them. A few years ago when I started carrying all these wedges I found it very comforting to know that if I was 40 yards out, I brought the 56 degree wedge back to belt high and swung through to belt high. 50 yards, same swing 52 degree. 30 yards, same swing 60 degree. 60 yards, same swing with a PW or 60 degree from shoulder high, and so on. I went so far as to write down the distances on a card and carried in my bag. I would get to the ball, determine the distance, look at the card and I knew exactly how to play it. It makes all the difference in the world to have no doubt in your mind how to play the next shot. The interesting thing about it is, as I got better at making contact with the center of the club face, I saw these distances grow to the point where I needed to add the 64 degree wedge.

High cappers are much more likely to miss the green or be in the 30 to 50 yards from the green range than low cappers. Having a go to shot from these distances is very important. Having a selection of wedges and know how hard to hit them makes it easier. The likelihood of hitting the green from 200 yards is slim, but the likelihood of being inside of 50 yards from there is high. More wedges give increase the chance of getting up and down.

Totally agree with you on this. I recommend that high handicap players have as many wedges as they can carry because it gives them more "full swing" yardages. While I wouldn't advise a high handicapper to try to figure out their 25%, 50%, 66.66%..... shots (I'm exaggerating, obviously), I would recommend learning a half shot with all their wedges (if not all irons). This is a shot I've had since I was trying to break 100 and it's one of my favorites. I find that even now, as a "better" player, I would rather hit that half shot hard from 60, 70, or 80 yards than try to finesse a wedge in from 30.

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Since I didn't find this topic in the forums, I thought we might discuss it here...

I'm currently gaming a 46* PW, 50*, 55* SW, 60*

My distance on full swing are:

PW 115-121 yards

50* 99-105 yards

SW 85-92 yards

60* 70-75 yards

First of all, I hope the gaps between the clubs are correct.

Second, I think having 4 wedges is doing more harm than good. Sometimes I sit between 2 wedges and don't know which one to hit... I'm sure some of you have a similar problem.

So my idea is to go to a 3 wedge set up.

Ideally, it should be 46* PW, 53* SW, 60*, correct?

But I don't think there are any 53* wedges out there with enough bounce to hit as a SW... most of the 14 bounce SW go from 54* to 56*

I could bend it to 53* but I have no experience with bending, so I don't know what I'm talking about here.

So if I don't want to bend it, what other options do I have? 46, 54, 60? Or 46, 52, 58? Which one would you recommend? The second option would have the gap a spread out evenly, but there is no 52* with 14 bounce.

In this case, my gap wedge and sand wedge would be the same club and I would have the freedom to choose a 58*/60* with 4 bounce or something.

I still haven't figured whether I'm a digger or a slider, so I thought having wedges with difference bounces would be a good idea.

What do you guys think?

EDIT: Went to the range again and measured the wedge distance with GPS, should be a little more accurate now.

I would recommend that you pay less attention to the labels and more attention to the lofts and how much you can do with those higher lofts rather than just what their max distance is. The higher lofted clubs are nice for overlaps and getting to know them helps you choose the one that will serve better at any given moment factored by how you feel and how good you are at that moment. The club does not dictate performance, you and how well you practiced and know that club do. When you get within short club distance, just know which clubs can comfortably get you there, use your eyes to identify the best landing and choose the most comfortable club you have for hitting that target and holding it.

Don't let the clubs tell you what you can do. Get to know what you can do with those clubs and make them do more. Clubs are just tools. You make the difference.

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My point was not a one-size-fits-all description, merely a suggestion for what a 3 versus a 20 handicapper should be looking for. The fact is that a higher percentage of a low handicapper's shots come from wedge distance, so they are the ones that need more options that a larger wedge set provide. It is not only carry distance that is the issue, but often the type of shot that is important.

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True, I absolutely bombed the driver all day on the par 4's, only had 3 approach shots that was a full shot (normally have at least 8). So I had many wedge shots, however, with this thread in mind, I did not vary my wedges with distance like I normally do. What I did was think of how hard to hit the pitching wedge to achieve the desired distance. It worked out pretty well. On 15 I remember thinking, "OK hit this 40 yards." and did. We also had a high handicapper with us, and he would have been unable to do that. However, he had difficulty hitting full shots.